frolic

October 16, 2013

Blog Action Day

Earlier this year (Ok, about a month or so ago), I was asked to be our church's liaison for Operation Christmas Child. I said I would think and pray about it. The next thing I knew, I was it!

When I got involved with OCC, I learned that there is soooo much more than just packing a box and getting the word out. The work that Samaritan's Purse is doing is amazing. They are truly being the hands and feet of Christ, all over the world.

After researching the Samaritan's Purse website, I realized there were more ways to help. I happened to notice a blogger program. We all know I'm not a famous blogger or anything but I enjoy it. Every little bit of marketing I can help with, I'm glad to do it!

Here is more info about Blog Action Day:

Blog Action Day is a one-day
international event that brings thousands of bloggers together to talk about an
important issue. Throughout Blog Action Day, participants help raise awareness
and money for charities and social causes. We invite you to participate with
Samaritan’s Purse.

This year, Blog Action Day will focus on human rights. We would like to draw attention to the crisis situation in Sudan and South Sudan that has been caused by brutal human rights violations carried out by the Sudanese government and its president, Omar al-Bashir. Below, you will find an overview of the dire situation that is driving hundreds of thousands of Sudanese people across the border into South Sudan refugee camps.

We've all heard about Sudan and the suffering there. I know I've seen George Clooney take major heat for standing up for the Sudanese people.

The underlying problem:

The root of the refugee
crisis is ongoing government-sponsored violence against Sudanese citizens. While
Samaritan’s Purse is committed to meeting the urgent needs of refugees, the underlying problem can only be addressed with broader
issues of governance and constitutionality. We encourage Christians to:

Pray for the
violence to end and for comprehensive peace for all of Sudan.

Give as God
calls to help meet the needs of displaced people living in South Sudan.

Spread the word to raise awareness of the problem and encourage others to get involved.

Here are some of the areas that need your prayer and support:

·
Displacement:

o
The Need: Approximately
190,000 refugees populate camps in northern South Sudan. These refugees fled across
the border as Sudan’s government troops conducted aerial bombings, ground raids,
and orchestrated famine – atrocities that continue to this day.

o
The Response:
Samaritan’s Purse works with partners inside the refugee camps to meet basic
needs in Jesus’ Name, including food, water, and medical care.

Nurse Erin Whitehouse examines a child at Yida refugee
camp’s Stabilization Center. Many refugees arrive with malnourished children
who need immediate care. Mothers throughout the camp know to bring their
children to the center if they become ill or need medical attention.

·
Hunger:

o
The Need: Many
children arrive in the refugee camps suffering from moderate and severe acute
malnutrition. Families cannot provide food for themselves because the violence
forced them to leave their farmland.

o
The Response:
Samaritan’s Purse screens and treats children for moderate to severe acute
malnutrition with outpatient therapeutic feeding programs. We partner with the
World Food Programme to conduct routine food distributions inside the camps.

When roads are flooded during the rainy season, the only way to
get food to the refugee camp in Yida is to drop it by plane.

The food laid out here will only feed 250 families for a month.

·
Scarce Medical Care:

o
The Need: Bunj Hospital is
the only healthcare provider to offer specialized surgical care, at-risk childbirth intervention, and life-saving nutritional programs in Maban County,
a large border region in northern South Sudan.

o
The Response:
Samaritan’s Purse began operating Bunj Hospital, in partnership with the UN
High Council on Refugees, in January 2012, and since then more than 600
life-saving surgeries have been performed. We are currently expanding to meet
increasing demand.

Dr. Evan Atar is on call 24 hours a day at Bunj Hospital in
South Sudan. He is the only full-time surgeon in an area where more than
200,000 people live, including over 110,000 refugees who have been driven from
their homes in Sudan.

Lack of Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene:

o
The Need: Access
to clean water, sanitation, and hygiene is always a challenge in refugee
situations.

o
The Response: Samaritan's
Purse supplies the majority of clean water access in Yida refugee camp. In
August, we produced approximately 13,605,000 liters of water, built 173
latrines, and trained 1,900 people in health and hygiene.

Samaritan’s Purse has established nine water points throughout
the Yida refugee camp, providing clean water for more than 20,000 people per
day.

As you can see, there is so much this country needs. See the caption for the photo below.

Choirs sang the national anthem of South Sudan at the
Independence Day ceremony on July 9, 2011. Part of the lyrics include: “Oh God!
We praise and glorify You for Your grace on South Sudan; Land of great
abundance, uphold us united in peace and harmony.”

Great things are going to happen for the Sudanese people. God, along with Samaritan's Purse, is the reason for good happening there. But, they have a long way to go.